“Hey.” He came up behind her and rested his hands on her shoulders. “I didn’t mean to upset you.” His voice was low in her ears, sending a quiver dancing up and down her spine. “I just wanted to say that I believe in you.”
“You were always the only one who ever did.” Her voice was raspy.
“That’s not true.”
She spun to face him. “It is.” She pointed to the painting. “When I won that art award, I got a small scholarship. I told my parents I wanted to be a professional artist, and they said I was wasting my talent. They wanted me to become a college professor like my dad or a pediatrician like my mom, but all I ever wanted to do was draw and paint. They were so disappointed in me when I went to school to become an art teacher.”
“You never told me that.” His words were soft, and he looked stricken. “Why did you keep it from me?”
“Because it was too painful to share.” She rested her hand flat against his chest. “You’re the only one who thought I could be an artist, and I let you down.” Now her tears were flowing like a waterfall, and she felt like an idiot for losing it in front of him—again!
Why couldn’t she keep it together when she was around Jake?
“Get over here.” He pulled her into his arms.
She basked in the comfort his strong arms provided, and she worked to get her tears under control. For a few moments, she imagined Jake was hers and they were in a real relationship, but then she shook herself back to reality and stepped out of his arms.
Emily plucked a tissue from a box on the desk and wiped her eyes and nose.
He touched her arm. “I still believe in you. You need to learn how to believe in yourself.”
“Right.” She cleared her throat and pointed to the painting. “Thanks for getting my painting out of the basement.” She tossed the tissue into a small trash can under the desk and picked up a notepad and a pen. “Let’s make a plan for the barn.” She sat in one of the office chairs, then studied the notepad and tried to ignore how her heart suddenly craved more hugs from Jake than ever. “When do you think the roof will be done?”
“I’d imagine by the end of the week, since four of us are working on it.” He sank down beside her, and while he discussed the barn, she tried to dismiss her longing to crawl back into his protective arms and stay there forever.
Chapter 8
Jake sat back on his heels and scanned the roof. It was Friday evening, and the roof renovation was finally done. He hadn’t expected it to take all week, but thanks to quite a bit of rotten wood, the project was bigger than he’d planned, and it had taken more money than expected. He was dipping into his savings, but it was for a good cause—his family’s legacy. He refused to let Emily pay. Instead, he’d rely on his savings and then his credit card.
The evening was actually cool, and he was grateful that the late-summer air was finally letting go of some humidity and hinting that autumn would be here soon.
Jake stood up to his full height and turned toward the orchard employees. “Thanks so much for staying late so we could finish this up. Next week we’ll start on the barn walls.”
“Sounds good, Boss,” Vince said, and Eddie and Rico nodded.
They all climbed down the ladder.
“Have a good weekend.” Jake waved as they climbed into their pickups and took off.
After stashing his gloves and supplies in the barn, he glanced around the area in search of Emily. They’d texted earlier, and she’d mentioned she was helping his mother with a few chores and would join him soon.
He pivoted toward an old picnic table, where Emily worked on her sketch pad. His lips turned up in a grin. He should’ve known she’d be drawing.
She was completely focused on her project. Her right hand flew over the paper, and her head bopped along with a beat only she could hear in her AirPods. Her dark hair fell in waves past her shoulders, catching the evening light in a way that cast an almost imperceptible red glow.
He liked the way the corners of her mouth curved up slightly as she sang along softly with an oldies song. Her vibrant golden eyes sparkled as she concentrated. And with her perfect nose, high cheekbones, and symmetrical face, he suddenly realized Emily was... captivating. His pulse quickened as he felt an unfamiliar spike of adrenaline in her presence.
He stilled for a moment as a strange feeling washed over him. He felt something unlock deep inside him—something he hadn’t felt for years. Was he imagining it? But if that were true, then why were his hands trembling?
He took a deep breath and tried in vain to dismiss this crazy notion that he had romantic feelings for her.
“Hey,” he called, and his voice sounded hoarse. He cleared his throat. “Carmichael!”
But Emily kept singing and drawing.
He crept up behind her and peered down at her sketch pad and found what looked like a label with the words “Hughes Family Orchard Cider” in the center of a logo featuring a grove of trees. She continued to sing the lyrics to “Do You Believein Magic” by The Lovin’ Spoonful while she shaded the label with a red pencil. As usual, the drawing was impressive. He’d always been blown away by her level of detail—even the leaves on the trees were lifelike. But as great as her logo was, he still wasn’t going to try to sell his cider and risk ruining his family’s reputation.
Emily shifted, and when her golden eyes focused on him, she gasped and removed an AirPod from her left ear. “I hate it when you sneak up on me,” she exclaimed.
